Not so many years ago, obtaining a phone system for your small business meant purchasing expensive and complex hardware, as well as having a technician to set it up and maintain it. The cost and inconvenience were enough to prevent many business owners from investing in a professional business phone system. Now, however, cloud-based phone systems are giving small businesses the ability to dramatically improve how they communicate, while also enabling them to compete with larger enterprises in ways that were previously impossible.
A Simplified System with Big Business Features
Prior to the development of cloud-based telecommunications, small businesses were oftentimes forced to purchase large-scale PBX equipment that significantly exceeded their needs. There just wasn’t a sensible solution for small business. Too often, business owners, frustrated by the complexities and cost of their phone equipment, would give up on it – never seeing any return on their investment.
Cloud-based business phone systems have opened up amazing possibilities for businesses of all sizes by providing a solution that can be managed by a non-technical person right from a PC or mobile device. What once required significant time and skill to set up can now be quickly executed by anyone, anywhere.
Flexibility to Facilitate Growth
Small businesses often grow quickly, and managing a phone system to accommodate these changes was once a major headache that involved calling out a technician, sometimes-complex installations and the purchase of more hardware.
One of the most game-changing aspects of cloud-based technology is its ability to be instantly scaled for any number of users without the need for additional equipment. A system such as RingCentral works just as effectively for a solo entrepreneur as it does for a business with dozens of employees, and it can be scaled up or down to meet rapidly changing needs. It also is not confined by a single location. Employees can be located thousands of miles apart and still have the same telecommunications capabilities as if they were all under the same office roof.
Cost-Effectiveness
Professional phone systems are simply too pricey for many small business owners. But equipment that costs tens of thousands of dollars is no longer needed. In its place is an internet-based, reliable business phone solution that is delivered for one low monthly cost. With such a cost reduction, nearly every business owner can afford to have the same telecommunication features as those being used by Fortune 500 companies. And, with fax also being delivered via the cloud, there is no longer even a reason to purchase a fax machine!
Cloud-based technology is leveling the playing field in business on many different fronts. Its advantages are particularly evident when you compare a cloud-based phone system to its more cumbersome and costly predecessors. At RingCentral, we are proud to be at the forefront of this technology and are dedicated to offering the No. 1 cloud phone system.
Originally published Jun 07, 2011, updated Aug 07, 2020
